Rapidly-deployable, drone-based wireless communications systems and methods for the operation thereof

ABSTRACT

Drone-based wireless communications systems are provided, as are methods carried-out by such wireless communications systems. In one embodiment, the wireless communications system includes a Satellite Signal Transformation (SST) unit and a plurality of aerial network drones, which can be deployed over a designated geographical area to form a multi-drone network thereover. During operation, the SST unit transmits a network source signal, which contains content extracted from a satellite signal. The multi-drone network receives the network source signal, disseminates drone relay signals containing the content through the multi-drone network, and broadcastings user device signals containing the content over the designated geographical area. In embodiments, the multi-drone network may broadcast multiple different types of user device signals for reception by various different types of user devices located within the designated geographical area, such as an arear containing communication infrastructure disabled by a natural disaster, a hostile attack, or other catastrophic event.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/946,675 filed on Apr. 5, 2018 (U.S. Pat. No. 10,439,705), which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/392,629 filed onDec. 28, 2016 (U.S. Pat. No. 9,973,261), whereby all of the aboveapplications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The following disclosure relates generally to communications networksand, more particularly, to drone-based wireless communications systems,which can be deployed on an as-needed basis to distributesatellite-supplied content to user devices within a designatedgeographical area.

BACKGROUND

Wireless communications networks are now well-established throughoutmost populated regions of the United States and many other developedregions of the world. The prevalence of such systems, coupled with thewidespread adoption of mobile phones and other user devices capable ofreceiving wireless signals distributed through such networks, hasgreatly increased the speed and convenience with which users receive andshare content, such as text messages, electronic mail, and audiovisualmedia. As a corollary, populations have become largely reliant on theunfailing availability of such wireless communications systems to serveas a primary mode of information dissemination. This reliance creates apotential vulnerability should the existing wireless communicationinfrastructure in a particular geographical area become compromised dueto a natural disaster, a hostile attack, or other catastrophic event.Similarly, in other instances, the capabilities of existing wirelesscommunications systems (e.g., the bandwidth or spectrum provided by acellular network) may be insufficient to support wireless communicationdemands when an exceptionally large group of people congregate in aparticular area. When forewarning is provided, certain measures may betaken to boost the wireless communication capabilities in an affectedarea; e.g., micro-cell towers may be temporarily installed to allowfrequency reuse improving carrier capacity. Such measures, however, areoften insufficient to fully satisfy the increased loads placed on thewireless communications systems and are associated with otherlimitations, such as constraints relating to the cost and time requiredfor hardware installation.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Embodiments of a drone-based wireless communications systems areprovided. In an implementation, the drone-based wireless communicationssystem includes a Satellite Signal Transformation (SST) unit and aplurality of aerial network drones, such as a plurality of rotary wingdrones. The plurality of aerial network drones can be deployed over adesignated geographical area to form a wireless multi-drone (e.g., mesh)network thereover. During operation, the SST unit transmits a networksource signal containing content extracted from a satellite signal. Atleast one aerial network drone in multi-drone network receives thenetwork source signal from the SST unit. The aerial network drones thendisseminate drone relay signals containing the content through themulti-drone network, while broadcasting user device signals containingthe content over the designated geographical area. In embodiments, themulti-drone network may broadcast multiple different types of userdevice signals for reception by various types of user devices locatedwithin the designated geographical area.

Embodiments of an aerial network drone, such as a specialized rotarywing drone, are further provided. In an embodiment, the aerial networkdrone contains a wireless receiver, an antenna array including at leastfirst and second antennae, and a drone controller architecture coupledto the wireless receiver and to the antenna array. During operation, thedrone controller architecture is configured to receive drone relaysignals at the wireless receiver as a first signal type, transform thedrone relay signals to second and third signal types different than thefirst signal type, and then broadcast the second and third signal typesvia the first and second antennae. In certain embodiments, the aerialnetwork drone may further include a flight system operably coupled tothe drone controller architecture, which is further configured tocommand the flight system to generally maintain the aerial network dronein an assigned hover position in a horizontally-spaced drone array.

Still further provided are embodiments of a method carried-out by adrone-based wireless communications system. In an embodiment, the methodincludes the steps or processes of deploying a plurality of aerialnetwork drones to form a multi-drone network over a designatedgeographical area, receiving a network source signal via at least one ofthe plurality of aerial network drones, disseminating drone relaysignals containing content extracted from the network source signalthrough the multi-drone network, and broadcasting user device signalscontaining the content over the designated geographical area forreception by user devices located therein. In implementations whereinthe drone-based wireless communications system further includes asatellite signal transformation unit, the method may further include thestep or process of, at the satellite signal transformation unit,receiving a satellite signal from a satellite, extracting the contentfrom the satellite signal, and transmitting the network source signalcontaining the content to the multi-drone network. In otherimplementations, the step of deploying may be performed by dispersingthe plurality of aerial network drones into a horizontally-spaced dronearray in which each drone is assigned a drone-specific hover position.In such implementations, the method may further include transmitting thenetwork source signal from a fixed wing drone to the multi-dronenetwork, while the fixed wing drones flies a repeating or closed-loopflight pattern an altitude above the horizontally-spaced drone array.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

At least one example of the present invention will hereinafter bedescribed in conjunction with the following figures, wherein likenumerals denote like elements, and:

FIG. 1 is a schematic of a drone-based wireless communications systemincluding at least one Satellite Signal Transformation (SST) unit and aplurality of aerial network drones (only a few of which are shown forclarity), as illustrated in accordance with an exemplary embodiment ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic of a plurality of fixed wing SST drones, which mayfly a repeating or closed-loop flight pattern at an altitude above thehorizontally-spaced drone array shown in FIG. 3 in an exemplary andnon-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is top-down schematic of a horizontally-spaced drone array(partially shown) that may be formed by the plurality of aerial networkdrones shown in FIG. 1 when deployed over a designated geographicalarea; and

FIGS. 4 and 5 are block diagrams of an exemplary SST unit and anexemplary aerial network drone, respectively, suitable for inclusion inthe drone-based wireless communications system shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following Detailed Description is merely exemplary in nature and isnot intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of theinvention. The term “exemplary,” as appearing throughout this document,is synonymous with the term “example” and is utilized repeatedly belowto emphasize that the description appearing in the following sectionmerely provides multiple non-limiting examples of the invention andshould not be construed to restrict the scope of the invention, asset-out in the Claims, in any respect. As further appearing herein, theterm “drone” encompasses the terms “unmanned aerial vehicle” and“unmanned aircraft system.”

The following describes embodiments of a drone-based wirelesscommunications system, which is well-suited for restoring or augmentingwireless communication capabilities throughout a designated geographicalregion or area. As indicated by the term “drone-based,” the wirelesscommunications system includes a plurality of aerial network drones,which cooperate to form a multi-drone (e.g., mesh) network over thedesignated geographical area. The drone-based wireless communicationssystem also includes at least one Satellite Signal Transformation (SST)unit, which receives satellite signals, extracts content from thesatellite signals, repackages (e.g., transcodes) the content intonetwork source signals, and then transmits the network source signals toone or more network drones. The network drones then disseminatedrone-to-drone signals containing the content throughout the multi-dronenetwork. The drone-to-drone signals may be transmitted by repeating thenetwork source signal across the multi-drone network. Alternatively,certain network drones may perform additional transformationfunctionalities to transmit a different signal type between dronescontaining the desired content. In conjunction with propagating thedrone-to-drone signals, the network drones also broadcast user devicesignals containing the content over the designated geographical area forreception by user devices located therein.

In certain embodiments of the drone-based wireless communicationssystem, the SST unit or units can be transportable terrestrialstructures, which may also serve as storage units or hangers fortemporarily stowing the network drones prior to deployment. For example,in an embodiment, at least one SST unit can be a transportableground-supported structure, which may be palletized and deliverable intoa designated area by ground transport or airdrop. In other embodiments,the SST unit can be implemented as a truck or other mobile vehicle,which is equipped with a satellite dish, satellite signal transformationcircuitry, and an antenna or antenna array for retransmission of contentderived from the satellite signal to the drone network. Again, the SSTunit may be utilized to transport the network drones into or near thedesignated geographical area prior to deployment, although this is notnecessary in all embodiments. As a further possibility, the wirelesscommunications system may include at least one SST unit in the form ofone or more drones. In this regard, embodiments of the wirelesscommunications system may include one or more SST units in the form ofhigh payload fixed wing drones, which fly (e.g., along a closed-loopflight pattern) at an altitude or flight level above the aerial networkdrone network. In still further embodiments, the SST unit may assumeother forms including, for example, that of a tethered aerial platformsuspended by balloons, a driven main rotor, or an auto-rotating mainrotor.

The drone-based wireless communications system may be utilized toprovide multiple different types or formats of wireless signals, whichcontain media or content derived from satellite signals, to user deviceslocated within a designated geographical region. In so doing,embodiments of the wireless communications system may restore or augmentcontent distribution to user devices capable of receiving wirelesssignals, such as Radio Frequency (RF) signals in the mid-frequency (MF),high frequency (HF), very high frequency (VHF), and ultrahigh frequency(UHF) bandwidths. Such devices may include, but are not limited to radioreceivers, television receivers including cable television systems,mobile phones, and Wi-Fi receivers supporting the operation of variousdifferent types of user devices, including home computers and wirelessmedical devices. The drone-based wireless communications system may thusrestore or augment content distribution to those user devices that areincapable of directly receiving satellite signals. This may be vitallyimportant in the event of a catastrophe, such as a natural disaster orhostile attack, in the aftermath of which the affected communicationinfrastructure remains inoperative and members of the impactedpopulation have limited access to varying types of wireless devices.

Embodiments of the drone-based wireless communications system may alsobe provided with additional capabilities beyond signal propagation andbroadcasting to, for example, further assist with disaster relief. Suchadditional capabilities may include, but are not limited to the abilityto receive incoming signals (e.g., cellular signals) from user devices(e.g., mobile phones) located in the designated geographical area as maybe useful when, for example, it is desired to pinpoint the location ofdevices carried by victims potentially trapped underneath rubble ordebris, such as a collapsed structure. In other embodiments, some or allof the network drones may be equipped with sensors, such as videocameras, infrared sensors, millimeter wave radar, or the like, capableof capturing and returning imaging data of the designated geographicalarea useful in search-and-rescue efforts. In such embodiments, themulti-drone network may provide corresponding data to the SST unit,another datalink-connected authority, or may instead communicatedirectly with other authorized wireless devices (e.g., mobiles phones,tablets, or the like) carried by first responders or other personnellocated on the ground. Exemplary embodiments of such a drone-basedwireless communications system will now be described in conjunction withFIGS. 1-4.

Detailed Example of the Drone-Based Wireless Communications System

FIG. 1 is a schematic of a drone-based wireless communications system10, as illustrated in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of thepresent disclosure. Drone-based wireless communications system 10includes at least one SST unit 12 and a plurality of aerial networkdrones 14. When deployed, aerial network drones 14 disperse orspread-out to form a multi-drone network 16 over a designatedgeographical region or area 18. In embodiments, multi-drone network 16may be implemented as a mesh network such that each aerial networkdrones 14 serves a node, which relays data to other nearby drones 14contained within mesh network 16. During operation of wirelesscommunications system 10, SST units 12 receive satellite signals from atleast one satellite 22. The satellite signals may be received as acontinuous data stream or as intermittent transmissions, such asburst-type signals. The satellite signals contain content, such aspublic broadcasting messages, which is desirably transmitted to userdevices located within geographical area 18. SST units 12 extract thiscontent from the satellite signal and transcode or otherwise repackagethe content into non-satellite signals or “network source signals”suitable for reception by one or more drones 14. SST units 12 thentransmit the network source signal to mesh network 16, as indicated inFIG. 1 by graphic 24.

While only three aerial network drones 14 are shown in FIG. 1 to avoidcluttering the drawing, drone-based wireless communications system 10will typically contain a significantly larger number of aerial networkdrones, as appropriate to provide complete or substantially completecoverage throughout coverage zone 20 and across designated geographicalarea 18. Furthermore, as indicated in FIG. 1, aerial network drones 14usefully assume the form of rotorcraft, such as quadcopters or othermulti-rotor unmanned aircraft, which are capable of prolonged and stablehovering. In further embodiments, aerial network drones 14 can assumeother forms including, for example, that of lighter-than-air or fixedwing aircraft. In certain embodiments, drone-based wirelesscommunications system 10 may contain multiple different types of aerialnetwork drones 14, which collectively form multi-drone network 16 whendispersed over geographical area 18 to carry-out the below-describedfunctionalities.

In an embodiment wherein drones 14 are rotary wing drones or anothertype of drone capable of hovering, aerial network drones 14 are eachassigned a hover position within the horizontally-spaced drone array.From a top down or planform perspective, the hover position can bedefined as a fixed position in space (e.g., a latitude and longitude) ora relative position (e.g., a set distance from one or neighboring droneswithin the array). The horizontally-spaced drone array may be twodimensional (2D) or single level such that aerial network drones 14 allhover at a single, set altitude. Alternatively, horizontally-spaceddrone array may be three dimensional or tiered such that differentsubsets of aerial network drones 14 hover at different altitudes. Aerialnetwork drones 14 can disperse into any suitable spatial configurationfor providing substantially uninterrupted or continuous coverage acrossdesignated geographical area 18. In one embodiment, aerial networkdrones 14 may disperse into a horizontally-spaced drone array, such asdrone array 34 described below in conjunction with FIG. 3. Aerialnetwork drones 14 may also periodically reconfigure or move in responseto commands received from SST units 12 or another control authority.Additionally, during operation of multi-drone mesh network 16, therelative positioning of aerial network drones 14 may be readjusted asappropriate (e.g., in accordance with swarm intelligence logic) to closeany gaps in coverage should one of aerial network drones 14 becomenon-responsive or non-functional.

During operation, aerial network drones 14 receive network sourcesignals 24 from SST units 12 and then disseminate drone relay signals 26containing the content throughout multi-drone mesh network 16.Concurrently, aerial network drones 14 broadcast user device signals 28,which further contain the content, over a coverage zone 20 encompassinggeographical area 18. Notably, multi-drone mesh network 16 can broadcastany number and type of user device signals 28 for reception by varioususer devices 30 located within geographical area 18. In embodimentswherein drone-based wireless communications system 10 is utilized fordisaster response, specifically, it may be desirable for multi-dronemesh network 16 to broadcast multiple different signal types suitablefor reception by a wide range of commercially-available consumer devicesas different members of the affected population may have limited accessto different types of devices. As briefly indicated above, anon-exhaustive list of such user devices includes radio receivers,television receivers including cable television systems, mobile phones,and Wi-Fi receivers supporting the operation of various different typesof user devices, including home computers and wireless medical devices.Further illustrating this point, a limited number of exemplary devicesare shown in FIG. 1 and include a cellular phone 30(a), a highdefinition television (HDTV) antenna 30(b), a wireless router 30(c), anda radio receiver 30(d). Multi-drone mesh network 16 may broadcastOver-The-Air (OTA) television signals, cellular signals, broadbandsignals, Amplitude Modulated (AM) radio signals, Frequency Modulated(FM) radio signals, shortwave radio signals, and other RFtelecommunications signals within MF, HF, VHF, and UHF bandwidths. Incertain embodiments, multi-drone mesh network 16 may also transmit mediastreams in a standard packetized format, such as a Transmission ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or IP User Datagram Protocol (UDP)format.

Drone-based wireless communications system 10 may contain any number andtype of SST units 12 suitable for providing the functions describedherein. In many instances, wireless communications systems 10 maycontain only a single SST unit 12 or, perhaps, two similar SST units 12for purposes of redundancy. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, wirelesscommunications system 10 is illustrated as containing three differenttypes of SST units 12: a portable freestanding structure 31, a fixedwing SST drone 32, and a satellite truck 33. With respect to portablefreestanding structure 31 and satellite truck 33, these SST units 12each serve as a specialized satellite earth station, which is uniquelyadapted to extract content from incoming satellite signals, repackage(e.g., transcode) the content into network source signals, and thentransmit the network source signals to one or more of aerial networkdrones 14 for dissemination throughout multi-drone mesh network 16.Additionally, in certain implementations, freestanding structure 31and/or satellite truck 33 may provide final signal transformationfunctionalities (that is, transform the incoming satellite signal intoone or more formats ultimately received by user devices) and thendirectly broadcast signals to nearby user devices. In this case,freestanding structure 31 and/or satellite truck 33 may be equipped withappropriate broadcasting equipment to serve as, for example, a portablecellular cite or radio tower.

Rapid deployment of drone-based wireless communications system 10 may bestreamlined by leveraging freestanding structure 31 and/or satellitetruck 33 to stow and transport aerial network drones 14 prior to dronelaunch. For example, in the case of satellite truck 33, an operator mayfirst drive satellite truck 33 to a selected site within or adjacentdesignated geographical area 18, while truck 33 carries drones 14 ascargo. After satellite truck 33 reaches its destination, aerial networkdrones 14 may then be launched from truck 33. Similarly, freestandingstructure 31 may be delivered to a selected location within or adjacentdesignated geographical area 18 by, for example, ground transport, watertransport, or airdrop. To facilitate such transport, freestandingstructure 31 may be palletized and house aerial network drones 14 priorto deployment thereof. After freestanding structure 31 has beendelivered to the selected location, aerial network drones 14 may then belaunched from structure 31 with or without manual assistance; e.g., incertain embodiments, structure 31 and aerial network drones 14 maysupport a fully automated drone launch and dispersal. In this manner,multiple palletized structures can potentially be airdropped by a cargoplane at different sites across a region or area affected by awidespread catastrophic event, such as an earthquake, tsunami or tidalwave, hurricane or typhoon, storm surge, or coordinated hostile attackdisabling large swathes of communication infrastructure.

In further embodiments, SST units 12 can include one or more fixed wingSST drones, such as fixed wing SST drone 32 shown in FIG. 1. Severaladvantages may be achieved through the usage of mid- to large-size fixedwing SST drones as SST units 12. Relative to ground-supported SST units,such as freestanding structure 31 and satellite truck 33, fixed wing SSTdrones (e.g., SST drone 32) can be deployed with greater rapidity andflexibility; e.g., one or more fixed wing drones can readily fly overgeographical areas that may be difficult to access by ground due todebris-obstructed roadways. Relative to rotary wing drones, fixed wingSST drones often have enhanced operative ranges and are capable ofremaining aloft for extended periods of time due to, for example, liquidfuel payloads and operation at higher altitudes. Additionally, fixedwing SST drones are typically able to carry heavier payloads including,for example, a satellite dish or receiver of the type described below.In further implementations, SST units 12 can assume other forms inaddition to or in lieu of those described above. For example, in otherembodiments, SST units 12 may be realized as rotorcraft,lighter-than-air aircraft, or tethered airborne platforms maintainedaloft by powered or unpowered (e.g. auto-rotating) main rotors.Furthermore, in implementations wherein SST units 12 are airborne, suchas units may be equipped with solar panels or other energy harvestingdevices (e.g., air-driven turbine and generator systems) to extendmission capabilities.

When SST units 12 include one or more fixed wing SST drones, such asdrone 32 shown in FIG. 1, the fixed wing drones may fly in an assignedpattern at a flight level above multi-drone network 16. This may beappreciated by briefly referring to FIG. 2, which illustrates threefixed wing SST drones 32(a)-(c) traveling a repeating or closed-loopflight pattern 37. In embodiments wherein fixed wing SST drones32(a)-(c) carry fixed-position satellite receivers detecting satellitesignals transmitted by one or more geosynchronous satellite, theconfiguration of flight pattern 37 and the separation between drones32(a)-(c) may be selected to ensure that at least one fixed wing SSTdrone 32(a)-(c) maintains a line-of-sight (LOS) with a region of spaceoverlying the equator, as indicated in FIG. 2 by graphic 35. Regardlessof the particular form or forms assumed by units 12, SST units 12provide at least one network source signal propagated across multi-dronemesh network 16 as drone-to-drone signals transmitted amongst aerialnetwork drones 14. When deployed, aerial network drones 14 disperse intoa fixed flight formation having predetermined spacing when viewed fromtop-down or planform perspective (hereafter, a “horizontally-spaceddrone array”) to facilitate the signal propagation and broadcastfunctionalities of network drones 14. Further description of anexemplary horizontally-spaced drone array will now be described inconjunction with FIG. 3.

Additional Description of Exemplary Drone Array

FIG. 3 illustrates a portion of a horizontally-spaced drone array 34into which aerial network drones 14 may organize when formingmulti-drone mesh network 16 (FIG. 1). Drone array 34 is not drawn toscale, with the lateral drone-to-drone separation greatly reduced forpurposes of illustration. As can be seen, the illustrated portion ofdrone array 34 is a 2D grid array including three rows A-C and fourcolumns 1-4, which separate a total of twelves drones 14 hovering at thesame or similar altitude. In other embodiments, horizontally-spaceddrone array 34 may have a different spatial configuration, may contain adifferent number of rows or columns of drones, and/or may includemultiple vertically-separated levels of drones. Drones 14 withinhorizontally-spaced drone array 34 may be substantially identical or,instead, may vary in function and design. In certain embodiments, thefunctionalities described herein may be divided amongst drones 14 invarious different manners. For example, drones 14 contained in the oddnumbered columns (columns 1 and 3) may transcode the content containedin the drone-to-drone signals to a first type of user device format,such as an OTA TV signal, while drones 14 contained in the even numberedcolumns (columns 2 and 4) may transcode pertinent content to a secondtype of user device format, such as a radio broadcast.

Each aerial network drone 14 may monitor its own position (referred toherein as the “ownship drone position”) within multi-drone mesh network16 (FIG. 1) utilizing a triangulation approach. For example, in anembodiment, each aerial network drone 14 may receive vector data orother positioning data (e.g., latitude and longitude coordinates) fromat least two neighboring drones 14 within horizontally-spaced dronearray 34, as indicated in FIG. 3 by double-headed arrows 36. Each drone14 may also receive additional positioning data from another referencepoint located above or below horizontally-spaced drone array 34. Forexample, additional positioning data may be received from a satellite,such as satellite 22 shown in FIG. 1, or one or more of SST units 12.Similarly, in embodiments wherein SST units 12 assume the form of fixedwing SST drones, aerial network drones 14 may triangulate theirrespective positions by periodically receiving vector or positioningdata from neighboring aerial network drones in horizontally-spaced dronearray 34 and positioning data from at least one SST unit 12 flying analtitude above drone array 34. In this case, the fixed wing SST dronesserving as SST units 12 can fly in a predetermined pattern at a flightlevel overlying horizontally-spaced drone array 34, as described abovein conjunction with FIG. 2. In this manner, each aerial network drone 14may repeatedly estimate an ownship drone position based, at least inpart, on data received from at least one neighboring drone included inthe plurality of aerial network drones; and implement flight adjustmentsto maintain the ownship drone position within a predetermined proximityof the drone-specific hover position.

In certain embodiments, aerial network drones 14 may help ensure dataintegrity by performing periodic data checks utilizing, for example, aCyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) approach. This may be appreciated byreferring to network drones 14(a)-(c) identified in FIG. 3, with thefollowing description focusing on network drone 14(a), but equallyapplicable to the other drones 14 within horizontally-spaced drone array34. During operation of wireless communications system 10 (FIG. 1),drone 14(a) may periodically capture a CRC image of the signal stream ormedium after transcoding (hereafter, the “ownship CRC image”). Networkdrone 14(a) may then query at least two neighboring network drones 14,such as drones 14(b), 14(c) in FIG. 3, for corresponding CRC images(hereafter, the “peer CRC images”). After receiving the correspondingCRC images from network drones 14(b), 14(c), network drone 14(a) thencompares the peer CRC images to the ownship CRC images, as well ascomparing the peer CRC images to each other, to determine whether anydiscrepancies exist. If the peer CRC images match, while the ownship CRCimage contains a non-acceptable level of discrepancies, network drone14(a) replaces the non-matching portion of the CRC images (e.g., one ormore transcoded frames) with the peer CRC images. Alternatively, ifdiscrepancies are identified between the peer CRC images, network drone14(a) may proceed with broadcasting utilizing the ownship drone CRCimage. In further embodiments, network drones 14 may perform a differentCRC process or another data validation approach prior to broadcast ofthe user device signals.

Additional Description of Exemplary Satellite Signal TransformationUnits

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an SST unit 50, which may be representativeof any or all of SST units 12 shown in FIG. 1. SST unit 50 includes anSST controller architecture 56, a satellite receiver 58 coupled to aninput of controller architecture 56, and a terrestrial transmitter 60coupled to an output of controller architecture 56. Additionally, SSTunit 50 may include any number of additional components 62, which arenot individually shown in FIG. 4. For example, in embodiments whereinbidirectional communication is permitted between SST unit 50 and theaerial network drone, SST unit 50 may also include an appropriatereceiver, which may be combined with terrestrial transmitter 60 as atransceiver. SST unit 50 will also include various other conventionalknown components depending upon the particular form assumed by unit 50;e.g., when assuming the form of a drone, such as fixed wing SST drone 32shown in FIG. 1, unit 50 will include a flight guidance system similarto flight system 74 described below in conjunction with aerial networkdrone 66.

SST controller architecture 56 can be implemented utilizing any suitablenumber of individual microprocessors, navigational equipment, memories,power supplies, storage devices, interface cards, and other standardcomponents known in the art. In this regard, SST controller architecture56 encompasses systems or distributed processing architectures includingmultiple discrete controllers or processing devices, which areoperatively interconnected to perform the various methods, processtasks, calculations, and display functions described herein.Furthermore, controller architecture 56 may include or cooperate withany number of software programs, firmware programs, or othercomputer-readable instructions. The components of SST unit 50 can beinterconnected utilizing any suitable electronic architecture, which mayinclude physical connections (e.g., a data bus) and/or wirelessconnections.

During operation of SST unit 50, SST controller architecture 56 receivesa satellite signal via satellite receiver 58, as indicated in FIG. 4 byarrow 64. The incoming satellite signal may be received in astandardized format, such as an MPEG-2 transport stream format. SSTcontroller architecture 56 then converts the incoming satellite signalto a multicast IP stream in accordance with a predetermined standardizedprotocol, such as a UPD or Real-time Transport Protocol (“RTP”) schemes.In this case, any currently-known or later-developed packetized formatcan be utilized including MPEG, QUICKTIME, WINDOWS MEDIA, and/or otherformats suitable for transmission to multi-drone mesh network 16 (FIG.1). Afterwards, SST unit 50 transmits the IP stream via terrestrialtransmitter 60 to the appropriate drones 14 included in multi-drone meshnetwork 16. Aerial network drones 14 then disseminate drone relaysignals 26 containing the content throughout multi-drone network 16,while broadcasting user device signals 28 containing the content overcoverage zone 20 and geographical area 18.

Additional Description of Exemplary Network Drones

Aerial network drones 14 are equipped with those components appropriatefor send and receiving drone relay signals to disseminate the contentthrough multi-drone mesh network 16 (FIG. 1), as well to broadcast userdevice signals containing the content to user devices located withindesignated geographical area 18. Additionally, aerial network drones 14may include those components required for the conversion of the dronerelay signals to one or more types of user device signals for broadcastover coverage zone 20. An example of an aerial network drone 14 isfurther shown in FIG. 5 and identified by reference number “66.” In theillustrated example, aerial network drone 66 includes the followingcomponents, each of which may be comprised of multiple devices, systems,or elements: (i) a drone controller architecture 68, (ii) a terrestrialtransceiver 70 coupled to an input and an output of controllerarchitecture 68, (iii) an antenna array 72 coupled to one or moreoutputs of controller architecture 68, (iv) a flight system 74 coupledto controller architecture 68 for bidirectional communication therewith,and (v) a mission-specific sensor suite 76. The components of aerialnetwork drone 66 can be interconnected utilizing any suitable aircraftarchitecture, which may include physical connections (e.g., providedthrough an avionic data bus) and/or wireless connections.

Finally, Drone controller architecture 68 and flight system 74 cam beimplemented utilizing various hardware, software, and firmwarecomponents. Additionally, flight system 74 may include sensors formonitoring parameters relating to network drone 66 including, forexample, a positioning device 82, such as Global Positioning System(“GPS”) device, for monitoring the position of drone 66. By comparison,drone controller architecture 68 may include, for example, a centralprocessor 78 and dedicated signal conversion circuitry 80. Duringoperation of aerial network drone 66, the network source signaltransmitted from SST unit 80 is received at terrestrial transceiver 70.Drone controller architecture 68 then retransmits the network sourcesignal via transceiver 70 as a drone relay signal for reception bynearby drones 14, which, in turn, propagate the drone relay signalsthrough multi-drone mesh network 16 (FIG. 1). The drone relay signalsmay be transmitted in a packetized format (e.g., as TCP/IP and/or UDP/IPpackets) accordance with well-known local area or wide area protocolsconforming to, for example, IEEE 902.3 and/or IEEE 902.11 standards. Inone embodiment, multi-drone mesh network 16 is implemented as a meshnetwork wherein each network drone 14 or node relays cooperate todistribute data (the drone relay signals) through mesh network 16. Thedrone relay signals may or may not be encrypted.

In addition to the above-described relay function, aerial network drone66 also provide signal transformation and broadcasting functionalities.In embodiment, the incoming source signal may be received as apacketized stream containing audio and video component streams, whichare transcoded or otherwise transformed utilizing dedicated conversionmodules and then provided to corresponding antennae in antenna array 72for broadcast. For example, to provide a radio (e.g., FM) broadcast,central processor 78 may separate the incoming satellite signals intocomponent streams utilizing, for example, Packet Identifier (PIDs)information embedded in the signals. Central processor 78 may then routethe audio stream to a first conversion module 84 included in conversioncircuitry 80. Conversion module 84 converts the audio component streamto a first type of signal (e.g., an FM radio signal), which is thensupplied to a corresponding antenna (e.g., an FM antenna 86) includedantenna array 72 for broadcast. Concurrently, central processor 78 mayalso route both audio and video streams to a second conversion module 88for conversion to a second type of signal, such as an OTA televisionsignal, which is then delivered to a second signal-specific antenna 90within array 72. In one embodiment, the conversion circuitry containedwithin modules 84, 88 may each include one or more Application SpecificIntegrated Circuits (ASICs), possibly packaged with othermicroelectronic devices as a System-in-Package (SiP) or microelectronicmodule, for reduced cost and enhanced efficiency. In furtherembodiments, signal conversion circuitry 80 may include a different typeor number of conversion modules capable of converting the incoming dronesignals various different types of user device signals in theabove-described manner.

As previously indicated, embodiments of drone-based wirelesscommunications system 10 may also be provided with additionalcapabilities beyond signal propagation and broadcast to, for example,assist with disaster response efforts. Such additional capabilities mayinclude, but are not limited to, the ability to receive incoming signals(e.g., cellular signals) from user devices located in the designatedgeographical area as may be useful when, for example, it is desired topinpoint a particular device carried by a person in need of help, suchas a person trapped underneath rubble or debris. In this case, networkdrones 14 may be utilized to locate lost or stranded people possessingmobile phones or other electronic devices capable of conducting aso-called “ping test”; that is, able to return data packet to a server.In such an embodiment, network drones 14 may have different signalstrengths such personnel could locate devices in the droneconstellation, which may be mapped by each network drones 14. Networkdrones 14 may then provide corresponding data to a control authorityon-the-ground personnel to help locate individuals in need of help andpossessing user devices. Stated differently, network drones 14 and, moregenerally drone-based wireless communications system 10 (FIG. 1) mayselectively transmit a request to return location data to a specificuser device and then transit the requested location data to anappropriate authority if received from the specific user device. Infurther embodiments, wireless communications system 10 (FIG. 1) maypermit bidirectional communication with user devices within geographicalarea 18 (FIG. 1) in a packetized format to, for example, serve as aLocal Area Network (LAN) or Wireless Area Network (WAN) to which userdevices can connect. In this case, all or a subset of network drones 14may be equipped with cellular antennae configured to receive wirelesssignals from user devices located within designated geographical area18.

In other embodiments, some or all of the aerial network drones may beequipped with sensors, such as video cameras, infrared sensors,millimeter wave radar, or the like, capable of capturing and returningimage data of the designated geographical area. In this manner, networkdrones 14 may also capture and return sensor data useful insearch-and-rescue efforts, such as heat maps of designated geographicalregion 18 (FIG. 1) to assist with the location of lost, stranded, ortrapped members of the affected population. When provided on networkdrones 14, such imagining sensors may return data as raw video framescaptured from video memory are converted from a conventional bitmap orsimilar format to a compressed streaming video format suitable fortransmission and/or routing on multi-drone mesh network 16. Such formatscan include, but are not limited to, WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER, QUICKTIME,MPEG, and similar formats. Compression, encryption, and/or otherprocessing can also be applied. If desired, audio data may be capturedin addition to video content. Video, audio, and/or any other streams canthen be concatenated or otherwise combined and transmitted onmulti-drone mesh network 16 for delivery to SST units 12 (FIG. 1) oranother control authority associated with wireless communications system10. In various embodiments, the media stream is packetized into asuitable format and transmitted to media catcher over multi-drone meshnetwork 16 in conventional TCP/IP and/or UDP/IP packets, althoughalternative embodiments may utilize other networking schemes andstructures.

CONCLUSION

Multiple embodiments of a drone-based wireless communications systemshave thus been provided. In the above-described exemplary embodiments,the drone-based wireless communications system includes at least one SSTunit and a plurality of aerial (e.g., rotary wing) drones, which aredeployed over a designated geographical area to form a multi-drone(e.g., mesh) network thereover. During operation, the SST unit transmitsa network source signal containing content extracted from a satellitesignal. At least one aerial network drone in multi-drone networkreceives the network source signal from the SST unit. The aerial networkdrones then disseminate drone relay signals containing the contentthroughout the multi-drone network, while broadcasting user devicesignals containing the content over the designated geographical area.The multi-drone network may broadcast multiple different types of userdevice signals for reception by various different types of user deviceslocated within the designated geographical area. The communicationssystem may thus restore or augment content distribution to user devicesincapable of directly receiving satellite signals, but capable ofreceiving terrestrial RF signals. The signal broadcasting andtransformation functionalities performed by the multi-drone network canbe individually performed by each aerial network drone or, instead,divided among multiple different types of aerial network drones. Theaerial network drones can vary in size, shape, and capabilities; and, incertain embodiments, some or all of the aerial network drones may becapable of receiving incoming user device signals, of providing sensordata (e.g., infrared or visible spectrum imaging data), and/or providingadditional functionalities useful in search-and-rescue efforts.

In one implementation, the drone-based wireless communications systemincludes an SST unit, such as a fixed wing drone and a plurality ofaerial network drones, such as a plurality of rotary wing drones. Theplurality of aerial network drones can be deployed over a designatedgeographical area to form a wireless multi-drone (e.g., mesh) networkthereover. During operation, the SST unit transmits a network sourcesignal containing content extracted from a satellite signal. At leastone aerial network drone in multi-drone network receives the networksource signal from the SST unit. The aerial network drones thendisseminate drone relay signals containing the content through themulti-drone network, while broadcasting user device signals containingthe content over the designated geographical area. In certainimplementations, the drone-based wireless communications system at leasta first aerial network drone included in the plurality of aerial networkdrones may include a wireless receiver, an antenna array including firstand second antenna (e.g., antennae 86, 88 included in antenna array 72shown in FIG. 5) and a drone controller architecture, which receivesdrone relay signals as a first signal type (e.g., a packetized networkformat), transforms the drone relay signals to second and third signaltypes (e.g., utilizing ASIC-containing conversion modules 84, 88 shownin FIG. 5), and then broadcast the second and third signal types via thefirst and second antennae, respectively.

While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in theforegoing Detailed Description, it should be appreciated that a vastnumber of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that theexemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and arenot intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of theinvention in any way. Rather, the foregoing Detailed Description willprovide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map forimplementing an exemplary embodiment of the invention. Various changesmay be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in anexemplary embodiment without departing from the scope of the inventionas set-forth in the appended Claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A drone-based wireless communications system,comprising: a satellite signal transformation unit configured to receivea satellite signal from a satellite, to extract content from thesatellite signal, and to transmit a network source signal containing thecontent; and a drone array of a network of a set of drones wherein eachof the drones are horizontally spaced from each other and are deployedto form a drone array over a designated geographical area, the dronearray comprising: a set of drones in one or more rows of a row drone setcomprising at least a first, a second and a third row of drones; and aset of drones in one or more columns of a column drone set comprising atleast a first, a second and a third column of drones; wherein each droneof the row drone set, and the column drone set is configured to hover ata similar altitude and to have one or more functionalities dividedamongst the drones of both the row and column drone set; wherein thedrone array is configured to: receive the network source signal from thesatellite signal transformation unit; disseminate drone relay signalscontaining the content through the drone array; and broadcast userdevice signals containing the content over the designated geographicalarea for reception by user devices located therein.
 2. The drone-basedwireless communications system of claim 1, wherein drones contained inan odd numbered set of columns of the column drone set are configured totranscode content contained in drone-to-drone signals to a first type ofuser device format.
 3. The drone-based wireless communications system ofclaim 2, wherein drones contained in an even numbered set of columns ofthe column drone set are configured to transcode content contained indrone-to-drone signals to a second type of user device format.
 4. Thedrone-based wireless communications system of claim 3 wherein thesatellite signal transformation unit comprises a fixed wing drone, andwherein the set of array drones comprise a plurality of rotary wingdrones.
 5. The drone-based wireless communications system of claim 4wherein the fixed wing drone is configured to fly repetitive flightpattern above the plurality of rotary wing drones during operation ofdrone-based wireless communications system.
 6. The drone-based wirelesscommunications system of claim 5 wherein the set of array drones ensuredata integrity by performing periodic data checks using a CyclicRedundancy Check (CRC).
 7. The drone-based wireless communicationssystem of claim 6 wherein the CRC is applied to a set of drones withinthe horizontally-spaced drone array.
 8. The drone-based wirelesscommunications system of claim 1 wherein at least a first array droneincluded in the plurality of array drones comprises: a wirelessreceiver; a first antenna; and a drone controller architecture coupledto the wireless receiver and to the first antenna, the drone controllerarchitecture configured to: receive the drone relay signals at thewireless receiver as a first signal type; transform the drone relaysignals to a second signal type; and broadcast the second signal typevia the first antenna.
 9. The drone-based wireless communications systemof claim 8 wherein the plurality of array drones disperses into ahorizontally-spaced drone array when deployed over the designatedgeographical area.
 10. The drone-based wireless communications system ofclaim 9 wherein each array drone in the plurality of array drones isconfigured to: repeatedly estimate an ownship drone position based, atleast in part, on data received from at least one neighboring droneincluded in the plurality of array drones; and implement flightadjustments to maintain the ownship drone position within apredetermined proximity of an assigned hover position in thehorizontally-spaced drone array.
 11. The drone-based wirelesscommunications system of claim 10 wherein, when forming the drone array,each array drone in the plurality of array drones repeatedlytriangulates an ownship drone position as a function of (i) datareceived from multiple neighboring array drones in the plurality ofarray drones and (ii) data received from at least one of the satelliteand the satellite signal transformation unit.
 12. The drone-basedwireless communications system of claim 11 wherein the plurality ofarray drones includes at least one array drone equipped with an imagingsensor configured to capture image data of a portion of the designatedgeographical area.
 13. The drone-based wireless communications system ofclaim 12 wherein at least one array drone is configured to: selectivelytransmit a request to return location data to a specific user device;and transmit the requested location data to an authority if receivedfrom the specific user device.
 14. The drone-based wirelesscommunications system of claim 1 wherein each array drone in theplurality of array drones is configured to perform a cyclic redundancycheck process utilizing data provided by at least one neighboring arraydrones prior to broadcasting user device signals across the designatedgeographical area.
 15. A method for configuring a plurality of dronesfor wireless communication, comprising: configuring a satellite signaltransformation unit for receiving a satellite signal from a satellite,for extracting content from the satellite signal, and for transmitting anetwork source signal containing the content; configuring a drone arrayof a network of a set of drones by horizontally spacing each of thedrones from each other and deploying each drone, and for forming a dronearray over a designated geographical area; configuring a set of dronesin one or more rows of a row drone set, and forming at least a first, asecond and a third row of drones; configuring a set of drones in one ormore columns of a column drone set, and forming at least a first, asecond and a third column of drones; configuring each drone of the rowdrone set, and the column drone set to hover at a similar altitude andto have one or more functionalities divided amongst the drones in boththe row and column drone set; and configuring the drone array forreceiving the network source signal from the satellite signaltransformation unit, for disseminating drone relay signals containingthe content through the drone array, and for broadcasting user devicesignals containing the content over the designated geographical area forreception by user devices.
 16. The method of claim 15, furthercomprising: configuring drones contained in an odd numbered set ofcolumns of the column drone set for transcoding content contained indrone-to-drone signals to a first type of user device format.
 17. Themethod of claim 16, further comprising: configuring drones contained inan even numbered set of columns of the column drone for transcodingcontent contained in drone-to-drone signals to a second type of userdevice format.
 18. The method of claim 17 wherein the satellite signaltransformation unit comprises a fixed wing drone, and wherein the set ofarray drones comprise a plurality of rotary wing drones.
 19. The methodof claim 18 wherein the fixed wing drone is configured to fly arepetitive flight pattern above the plurality of rotary wing dronesduring operation of drone-based wireless communications system.
 20. Acontroller system for drone-based wireless communications system,comprising: a satellite signal transformation unit configured to receivea satellite signal from a satellite, to extract content from thesatellite signal, and to transmit a network source signal containing thecontent; and a drone array of a network of a set of drones wherein eachof the drones are horizontally spaced from each other and are deployedto form a drone array over a designated geographical area, the dronearray comprising: a set of drones in one or more rows of a row drone setcomprising at least a first, a second and a third row of drones; and aset of drones in one or more columns of a column drone set comprising atleast a first, a second and a third column of drones; wherein each droneof the row drone set, and the column drone set is configured to hover ata same or a similar altitude and to have one or more functionalitiesdivided amongst the drones of both the row and column drone set; whereinthe drone array is configured to: receive the network source signal fromthe satellite signal transformation unit; disseminate drone relaysignals containing the content through the drone array; and broadcastuser device signals containing the content over the designatedgeographical area for reception by user devices; and a drone controllerconfigured to command a flight system to generally maintain each arraydrone in an assigned hover position in a horizontally-spaced drone arrayand to disperse the plurality of array drones into a horizontally-spaceddrone array in which each drone is assigned a different drone-specifichover position.